Air heater



H. BAETZ AIR HEATER March 15, 1932.

Filed March 21. 1930 AVWZA/T P: HENRY 6A 6715.

Patented Mar. 15, 1932 HENRY BAETZ, OF ST. LOUIS, JVIISSOURI AIR HEATERApplication filed March 21, 1930. Serial No. 437,737.

My invention has relation to improvements in air heaters and it consistsin the novel features of construction more fully set forth in thespecification and pointed out in the 5 claims.

The object of the present invention is to provide a radiator that may beembodied in an air heater, said radiator comprising a heating elementadjacent to the surface of which is fixed an extended radiator surfacein contacting relation, and having channels, or

passage-ways, for conducting air. The air is, of course, divided intostreams by virtue of the shape of the extended surface and these streamsare confined between the heated channel walls of the extended surfacethroughout the entire period that they are passing through the casing.Thus, a decided advantage in efficiency is gained over the type ofextended surface now commonly in use,

(namely, fins or spines projecting from the heating elements, such asradiator coils) and a heater of my design is capable of radiating thesame amount of heat as an old type of heater considerably larger insize. A further object is to provide a heater of high efliciency by acomparatively simple method of construction. These advantages as well asothers will be better apparent from a detailed 5 description of the samein connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is acombined side elevation and vertical section of the heater; Fig. 2 is afront elevation with part of the front wall broken away; and Fig. 8 is afragmentarily detail showing how the extended surface between the heatinelements may be arranged in contacting relation with said elements.

Referring to the drawings showing my improved radiator embodied in aunit heater, represents the heater casing comprising a medialcylindrical part 1 and conical end walls 2 and 3, the former having aflanged air inlet opening 4 in which operates a fan 5 mounted on motorshaft 6 of the motor 7 carried in a supporting spider 8 fixed to theflange 4. The conical wall 8 has an air outlet opening 9 also defined bya flange 10 to which may be connected a hot air distribution pipe ifdesired. A plurality of heating elements in the formof hollow rings 11,12, and 13 are concentrically arranged within the medial part 1 ofcasing C which elements'are connected by several (in the presentinstancefour) series of nipples 14, 15 and 16, th

outer nipple 14 of which projects beyond the wall land has its endscrew-threaded to receive either a cap 17 or steam pipe 18. There will,of course, be a steam pipe 18 connected to each of two of the pipes 14(as shown) one of which will serve as the steam inlet and the other asthe condensation outlet. The two pipes 14 not in use either as inlet oroutlet are closedby caps 17. It is apparent from an inspection of thedrawings that steam enter ing any of the pipes 14 will traverse theheating element 11 from which ill] -will pass through pipe 15 to heatingelement 12, thence through pipe 16 to heating element 13, and the waterof condensation discharges in a reverse manner through pipes 16, 15, andpipe 114, that is utilized as the condensation out- At the center of thecasing C is a hollow drum 19 having its end adjacent to the fan 5 closedby a conical cap 20, the wall of said drum being suitably spaced fromthe heating element 13. The heating element 11 is also spaced from thecasing wall 1, and into each of these spaces is arranged extendedheating surface. This extended heating surface consists of fluted orzig-zag heat conducting elements 21, 22, 23 and 24 each of which is bentfromthin, springy sheet metal so that the fluting is of proper size toallow the elements to be forced into the spaces between heating elementsand hold themselves in place by the inherent tension in the material.

The loops (5 of thefiuted conducting ele- 'ment provide channels 6 and cfor thepassage of air which is heated by contact with thehot walls ofsaid loops and radiator surface. Obviously, the contacting of theextended surface with the radiator surface along the many linesindicated at d (Fig. 3) conducts the heat from the radiator surface toevery part of the extended surface.

If desired, I may build a single radiator embodying the principles ofthe invention, in which case a heatingelement is arranged.

in spaced relation with a supporting or confining wall, and into thisspace between the surface of the heating element and confining wall isforced the metal fiuting for forming 5 the channels for a flow of air.

A radiator so constructed is simple, capable of low costmanufacture, andpossesses high efiiciency.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. In a radiator, heat conducting elements adjacent to the radiator"surface, "said elements comprising zig-zag or fluted sheetsof springymaterial providing channels for con fining air streams, a supportingwall for sa-id sheets disposed in fixed spaced relation and parallelwith the radiator surface, one end of each element bearing "against theradiator surface and the opposite end of :each element against thesupporting wall.

2. An .air heater comprising a casing, means for moving air through saidcasing, :a heating element within the casing and spaced therediro'm,Lhea't conducting elements comprising corrugated members disposed be-:tween the casing :and heating element, said corrugated members havingchannels, the bounding walls of which are confined by their inherentexpansive property between the surface of the heating element and thecasing.

L3. Aniair heater comprising a circular cashaving an air inlet and airoutlet, means for z=moving :air through the casing in pathssubstantially parallel with the longitudinal axis thereof, "a pluralityof annular heating elements iconeent-ri'cally disposed in spacedrelation within the casing, and heat iconducting elements arrangedbetween the heating elements :and having channel passages for 40theflowota-ir.

4;. An air heater comprising a circular casinghaving an air inlet and anair outlet, means for moving air through the casing in Epathssubstantially parallel with the long-itudinal axis thereof, and anannular heating element disposed withinsaid casing in parallelism withand spaced :from the wall thereof, a heat conducting "element arrangedbetween the heating element "and the casing, said conducting elementcomprising a fluted sheet of springy material to provide air passagesthrough the casing and held in place by its expansive force exertedagainst the casing amd heating element.

.In testimony whereofl vhereunto aflix signature.

HENRY BAETZ.

